We recently discussed how to discover your brand and how to determine if your website fits your brand. In the final portion of our three part series we will show you how we take all this information and develop an internet marketing strategy.
So at this point, you have a website that reflects your brand and differentiates you from your competitors. I’m going to assume that your website is already optimized for search engines and that you have a good user experience. (Of course if you haven’t done any SEO we can handle that as well, just ask!) You’re done, right? Yes and no. You could be done if you’re not wanting online to be a huge source of business. If you are counting on online, it’s time to start working on your overarching online marketing strategy.

This is the part that we find most small businesses get overwhelmed. With so many different avenues out there, it can be stressful knowing what to pursue. Our first piece of advice? Don’t pursue them all. It’s okay not to. You’re a small business owner with limited resources, so only go with the ones that will have the biggest ROI.

So how do you know which ones are worth your time? This is something we sit down with each client and determine what fits their needs and budget. Here are a few of the internet marketing paths you can take.

• Content Marketing

In the online marketing world, content is king. Google wants you to deliver value to your site visitors and unique content is one way of going about this. Building a content strategy isn’t easy though. You don’t want to write the same thing that everyone else in your industry is writing about. Instead, you’ll need to take stances on issues or solve your clients’ unique problems, giving them a reason to keep coming back to your site. If you can do this, great, but don’t just write content for the sake of it. If you’re a small sub shop for example, it’s going to be difficult to write content that’s on-brand and relevant to your audience. In this case, focus on other marketing strategies.

• Paid Internet Marketing

• Social Media Marketing

• Email Marketing

Email marketing is not an effective method of gaining new customers. However a well managed email list is a great avenue for businesses to increase customer retention or brand loyalty. People get tens to hundreds of emails a day, which means to be noticed you must provide value. Your email marketing strategy should always keep your brand position in mind and always give the recipient a reason to read. For example, you open email from your dentist office reminding you about an appointment or from a local ice cream shop that offers discounts because these emails contain value. When people open these emails, their lives get easier or they’re given something that gives them tangible value. It’s vital that your email marketing communications do the same whether it be content or deals.

• Local Internet Marketing

If you’re a small business using the Internet to drive traffic to your store, we absolutely believe you should be invested in local. Here’s an article we recently published that explains more about the value of local internet marketing and optimizing your Google listing. This is often one of the first areas we recommend small businesses get started as the ROI is almost always high.